The Ugly Truth

The results of the SUNY review have ensured that Binghamton University students won’t be associated with high academic achievement and quality education when we depart for the real world. Instead, we will be tied to the spectacular failure and corruption exemplified by our athletic department and administration.

In the fall 2008 semester the men’s basketball team had a cumulative GPA of 2.21 (see Page 1). Until a player was arrested for allegedly possessing and selling cocaine, nothing was done. Instead, the coaches and our president took advantage of every loophole, breaking rules to keep the players here and to win games. Basketball players were given their own tutoring program and allowed to take independent study classes with professors more likely to be lenient.

Some academically troubled players were directed straight into the School of Education and Human Development, where they were allowed to have up to 16 credits of such deeply academic subjects as theories of Softball, Bowling 1 and Care and Prevention of Injuries.

Instead of helping and guiding them, the coaches treated these players like cash cows and ensured that things only got worse. The audit shows a series of text messages that suggest that assistant coach Marc Hsu gave Malik Alvin money to pay his drug fines and visits to Denny’s, and fixed plagiarized papers so the players wouldn’t get caught. All this assistance existed as long as BU continued to win; as soon as the corruption was revealed, the players were left to suffer the consequences alone.

When people began to question the administration’s policies, they were either let go (Sally Dear) or accused of racism by DeFleur herself.

Despite Pipe Dream editors practically begging her for an interview, DeFleur only consented to sit down to pre-approved questions at her recent press conference, in which she gave an impressive speech and answered nothing at all. She was then conveniently out of town when the audit results were released. The hypocrisy is sickening, especially coming from the woman who has continuously touted our claim as the Premier Public University of the Northeast. All the while, she has been privately putting academics second to her NCAA dreams.

And now, after dragging this school through the mud on her quest to D-1 fame, DeFleur is leaving the premises and not looking back, leaving us to deal with the mess.

With all due respect Ms. President, we’ve been taught that it’s honorable to own up to your mistakes, not set up others to take the fall and cover your own ass. Your skeletons are coming out of your airplane hangar, and if you have any respect for the school you’ve claimed to love for the past 20 years, you should show your commitment by sticking around to help us salvage this school and its reputation.

This isn’t the legacy we signed up for when we sent in our acceptance letters.